The pool was always calmer at night. Under the stars and the moonlight, everyone else gone to bed or scattered elsewhere, a quiet place for Alcryst to unwind and escape his self-doubt for a while. The water felt just right during this time, too, warm but also cool enough to keep him moving. To keep him focused on every stroke of his arms, every kick of his feet.

Swimming was one of the few things he was nearly as good at as Diamant, even if he never won a single race between them. It didn't bother him because those races were just for fun, his brother's way of teaching him. If Alcryst came even close to beating him, it meant he was improving. And even if he didn't, or even if someday he hit a plateau, it was oddly okay.

These days, he didn't swim to prove anything to anyone. It had become as much of a way to unwind for him as playing the piano had been back home, or whenever the Divine One invited him to his room to play for him. The water refreshed him, body and mind, after a long day of battles or training. Of worrying whether he'd done a good job, or if something he'd said earlier came out wrong and the person he'd said it to was secretly upset with him. Of worrying about his mother, whom Father had insisted hide somewhere safe in case things took a turn for the worse.

Of being afraid that if he didn't think about any of those things for a while, it meant he didn't care anymore.

It's okay. You need this, you'll fall apart if you don't take a break, the Divine One had said the first time he'd caught Alcryst coming back from the pool late at night, when he'd thought everyone else was fast asleep.

Alcryst treasured his family, his retainers, everyone he considered a friend. He appreciated their words of reassurance and their kindness, even though he didn't feel he deserved it. But lately it seemed everything the Divine Dragon told him was enough to put him more at ease, even if only for a little while.

So he swam, relishing in the quiet, the softness of the water against his skin, the pleasant stretch of his muscles. When he needed to rest, he let himself float on his back, glancing up at the stars.

He was tired by the time he climbed out of the pool to dry off, and when he changed into his pajamas and fell into bed, he felt okay about going to sleep in a way he hadn't for weeks.